The subject matter herein relates generally to interconnecting circuit boards, and more particularly, to electrical connector assemblies that are configured to electrically couple two circuit boards.
Some electrical systems, such as servers, routers, and data storage systems, utilize backplane assemblies for transmitting signals and/or power through the electrical system. Backplane assemblies typically include a backplane circuit board, a motherboard, a plurality of daughter cards and, optionally, a midplane circuit board. The assemblies also include one or more electrical connectors that are attached to the circuit board(s) for interconnecting the daughter cards to the circuit board(s) when the daughter card is inserted into the backplane assembly. Each daughter card includes a header or receptacle assembly having a mating face that is configured to connect to a mating face of the electrical connector. The header/receptacle assembly is typically positioned on or near a leading edge of the daughter card. When inserted, the mating faces of the header/receptacle assembly and the electrical connector are aligned with each other and face each other along a central axis. The daughter card is then moved in a mating direction along the central axis until the mating faces engage and mate with each other.
However, the conventional backplane assemblies afford a limited number of possible arrangements for interconnecting the daughter cards to the backplane circuit board relative to the mating direction. For example, when the header/receptacle assembly is on a surface of the daughter card and faces a direction perpendicular to the mating direction and the electrical connector is on the backplane circuit board and also faces a direction perpendicular to the mating direction, the daughter card and the backplane circuit board may not able to connect. In addition, backplane assemblies that include a midplane circuit board may affect the electrical system's cooling capabilities by, for example, limiting airflow through the system.
Accordingly, there is a need for an electrical connector assembly that may interconnect circuit boards that are oriented in an orthogonal relationship. Furthermore, there is also a need for alternative electrical connector assemblies that are capable of connecting daughter cards to a backplane circuit board of a backplane assembly.